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The $975,000 mare Pollara led the way as the Keeneland November breeding stock sale opened its Book 2 portion with continued restraint at the upper end of the market.
Grade 1 winner Concrete Rose sold for $1.95 million and top-level producer Indian Miss sold for $1.9 million as a broad buying bench was in action to open the Keeneland November breeding stock sale on Monday. The sale began with declines in average and median figures, but posted a steady buyback rate, a positive indicator in what has been a highly polarized Thoroughbred marketplace in 2020.
Eclipse Award champion Monomoy Girl continued to write herself into the Thoroughbred industry's record books, selling for $9.5 million to Spendthrift Farm on Sunday night at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky fall selected mixed sale. The elite single-session auction, which opened the mixed-sale season in North America, finished with an improved average price but a decline in median.
Champion Monomoy Girl wrote herself into the history books with her trip through the auction ring Sunday night at the Fasig-Tipton Kentucky fall selected mixed sale and will continue to write herself into the history books on the racetrack. The mare was purchased by Spendthrift Farm for $9.5 million and will remain in training with Brad Cox for another campaign in 2021.
The winners of six American classic races – plus several other major events – will be represented by their first weanlings in the sales ring this fall. But the horse who pulled off the sweep is the undisputed star of the show. Horse of the Year Justify, the undefeated winner of the 2018 Triple Crown, will look to continue to build on his early commercial popularity as his first foals take their first steps onto a major stage.
North American auction companies have worked to provide remote-bidding options throughout this year's impacted 2-year-old and yearling sale seasons, expanding traditional phone-bidding programs and also integrating newly developed online-bidding platforms into their live auctions.
The November breeding stock sales in Kentucky always get a boost from the Breeders' Cup, which can provide blockbuster catalog updates. This year is no exception, with more than a dozen fillies and mares expected to start in Breeders' Cup races at Keeneland, then sell in the following days.
The Breeders' Cup was contested at Keeneland for the first time in 2015. Five years later, as the Breeders' Cup returns to Keeneland, a number of prominent young sires have already emerged from the track's first time as host and will be represented by offspring in this year's event, including Triple Crown winner American Pharoah and champion Nyquist.
There's something for everyone at the Keeneland November breeding stock sale, which begins its run on Monday, Nov. 9, two days after the Lexington track hosts the Breeders' Cup for the second time. Following are some key horses to watch during Keeneland November's Book 1 session.
Fasig-Tipton dubs its annual Kentucky fall selected mixed sale the “Night of the Stars,” and this year's catalog proves why. Three Eclipse Award champions are among the offerings, and several other runners are set to make their case for this year's championships at the Breeders' Cup just one day prior.
